The Current Crisis
The outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War caused the premature suspension of the First Vatican Council on October 20, 1870 and left the Church’s theological self-understanding somewhat unbalanced. In its first
WYD-1993: The Turning Point
On this twenty-fifth anniversary of World Youth Day in Denver, I can’t help sharing one of my favorite personal memories of John Paul II. It was December 15, 2004, and
Cardinal McCarrick and How Pius XI Might Have Disciplined Him
Pope Pius XI, who was Bishop of Rome from 1922 until early 1939, is little remembered these days, which is a shame. For in the last years of his pontificate,
Homelands and Social Doctrines
With hundreds of bishops coming to the Vatican for a synod in October 2001, I decided to spend that month in Rome conducting interviews for what would eventually become the
The Holy See, China, and Evangelization
In a recent interview, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, Secretary of State of the Holy See, suggested that certain critics of a deal between the Vatican and the People’s Republic of China
Making a Diverse College of Cardinals Work
With the exception of the two consistories held by Pope John XXIII in 1958 and 1959, every creation of new cardinals since Pope Pius XII has decreased the percentage of
Baseball and Synod 2018
I trust it won’t cause heartburn among the editors of Commonweal if I confess to having cheered at a recent article they posted, “Quit Trying to ‘Fix’ Baseball.” Therein, Professor Gregory Hillis
An Even Worse Vatican Deal with China
Of all the disturbing and even silly things that have been said in defense of the deal between the Vatican and China reportedly being negotiated, the most offensive is that
Getting Ready for Synod-2018
The headline on a March 3 story at the Crux website was certainly arresting: “Cardinal on charges of rigged synods: ‘There was no maneuvering!’” The cardinal in question was Lorenzo Baldisseri, secretary-general of the Synod
Pope Francis Is Playacting Realpolitik
In recent weeks, many observers have been puzzled, and some deeply disturbed, by what appears to be an impending deal between the Vatican and the People’s Republic of China. The
A Vatican-Based Bishop Extols China
Despite the media and blogosphere attention he attracts, Bishop Marcelo Sánchez Sorondo, a 75-year-old Argentine who is chancellor of various pontifical academies, is a small-bore bit player in the current
On the Vatican’s Reported Capitulation to Beijing
The “examination of conscience” is an important part of Catholic spirituality, which always precedes confession but is ideally practiced at the end of each day: a review of what one
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The Gospel without Compromise
